on the right. In this part of it are the ruins of a large square building, perhaps once a convent; and here too was the scene of one of the battles between Ibrahim Pasha and the rebel Fellâhs in A. D. 1834. The valley passes on towards the right, and further down (as I suppose) receives that which descends from Solomon's Pools, and so runs to the Dead Sea.

Our road now crossed the ridge obliquely towards the left; and brought us at half past two to a narrow valley descending towards the East. Along the side of the northern hill was an aqueduct, which, as we afterwards found, passes around the eastern end of the same hill and enters the lower Pool. Crossing this ridge we came upon the more open valley in which are the Pools. This also descends towards the East; receives the Wady we had just crossed; and further on unites with Wady et-Tuheishimeh. From the hill, we could see before us, at a distance across the valley, the little village and former church of St. George, called by the Arabs el-Khudr. Our path led us along the upper end of the upper Pool, which we reached at 2 o'clock. There are three of these immense reservoirs, lying one above another in the sloping valley, and bearing every mark of high antiquity. A small aqueduct is carried from them along the sides of the hills to Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Their name in Arabic is el-Burak. Close by is a large square Saracenic fortress, called Kul'at el-Burak; which seemed now to be inhabited only by the keeper of the Pools.

We stopped for half an hour, and took a hasty survey of the reservoirs; but as we afterwards visited them again and examined them more at leisure, I defer the description of them for the present. A road passes from hence to Bethlehem along the aqueduct; but as

1) See under May 17th.
VOL. I.

41

2) See under May 8th.

we wished to press forward, we took one more direct, which leads obliquely up the gentle ascent N. of the Pools; setting off at a quarter past three o'clock. The path passes afterwards over a level, but exceedingly rocky tract, and was difficult for the camels. Our road lay nearly half a mile to the left of Bethlehem, which we saw from a distance; but it was afterwards hidden from us by the intervening hill. The Arab name is Beit Lahm. On our left was the head of a valley, running at first parallel to our course, and then bending to the N. W. around a hill on the left, towards the Mediterranean. It is here called Wady Ahmed. On the eastern slope of this hill, overagainst Bethle hem, lies the large village of Beit Jâla, inhabited like Bethlehem by Christians, and surrounded by olivegroves extending into the valley. At 4 10' we were opposite Bethlehem, between it and Beit Jâla. The road then passes along a low swell or ridge between Wady Ahmed on the left, and the head of a Wady on the right, which flows off N. of Bethlehem to the Dead Sea.

Someways up the gentle acclivity, which here rises towards the N. E. from Wady Ahmed, stands the Kubbet Râhîl, or Rachel's Tomb, which we reached at 4h 25'. This is merely an ordinary Muslim Wely, or tomb of a holy person; a small square building of stone with a dome, and within it a tomb in the ordinary Muhammedan form; the whole plastered over with mortar. Of course the building is not ancient; in the seventh century there was here only a pyramid of stones. It is now neglected, and falling to decay; though pilgrimages are still made to it by the Jews. The naked walls are covered with names in several

1) Adamnanus ex Arculfo, II. 7. The present building had formerly open arches on the four sides, which were walled up about

a century ago. It seems to have been built before Edrisi's day; see Edrisi, p. 345. ed. Jaub. Comp. Cotov. Itin. p. 245. Pocoke II. p. 39.

languages; many of them in Hebrew. The general correctness of the tradition which has fixed upon this spot for the tomb of Rachel, cannot well be drawn in question; since it is fully supported by the circumstances of the Scriptural narrative. It is also mentioned by the Itin. Hieros. A. D. 333, and by Jerome in the same century.1

Sea;

Still ascending the hill towards the Greek convent of Mâr-Elyâs, the road passes to the left around the head of a deep valley running off eastward to the Dead and affords a wide view out over the mountainous regions towards and beyond that sea, (including Bethlehem and the Frank mountain. The deep basin of the sea could also be in part made out; but its waters were not visible. Here we began to see traces of the pilgrims now collected in Jerusalem at the festival of Easter. A large number of their horses were feeding on this spot, guarded at the moment only by a single The animals were sleek and in good case; and had no appearance of having made a long journey. The same night, as we afterwards learned, the keepers were attacked by robbers; one man was killed; another wounded; and some of the horses driven off.

man.

At 4h 55' we came opposite the convent of Mâr Elyâs, which lies on the brow of the high ridge, overlooking Bethlehem and the deep valley around which we had just passed; while towards the North the descent is small, and the waters run again towards the Mediterranean. Here we got our first view of a portion of the Holy City,-the mosk and other high buildings standing on Mount Zion without the walls. As we advanced we had on the right low hills; and on the left the cultivated valley or plain of Rephaim or the Giants, with gentle hills beyond. This plain is

1) Gen. xxxv. 16-20. Hieron. Epist. LXXXVI. ad Eustoch. Epi

taph. Paulæ, Opp. Tom. IV. ii. p. 674. ed. Mart.

broad, and descends gradually towards the S. W. until it contracts in that direction into a deeper and narrower valley, called Wady el-Werd, which unites further on with Wady Ahmed, and finds its way to the Mediterranean. Along this plain we met many people, mostly Christians, men, women and children, returning from Jerusalem. It was now the eve of Easter Sunday; and the miracle of the Greek holy fire had just been performed. They were dressed in their best attire, and seemed light-hearted and gay.

The plain of Rephaim extends nearly to the city; which, as seen from it, appears to be almost on the same level. As we advanced, the plain was terminated by a slight rocky ridge, forming the brow of the valley of Hinnom. This deep and narrow dell, with steep rocky sides, often precipitous, here comes down from the North from as far as the Yâfa Gate; and sweeping around Mount Zion at almost a right angle, descends with great rapidity into the very deep valley of Jehoshaphat. The southern side of Zion is very steep, though not precipitous; while the great depth of the valley of Jehoshaphat struck me with surprise. We crossed the valley of Hinnom opposite the S. W. corner of Zion; and passed up along the eastern side of the valley to the Hebron or Yâfa Gate. On our left was the Lower Pool, an immense reservoir now broken down and dry. Above this the aqueduct from Solomon's Pools curves across the valley on very low arches. At length, at 6 o'clock, we entered the Holy City, el-Kuds, just at the closing of the gates on the evening before Easter Sunday; and found a welcome home in the houses of our missionary friends and countrymen.

1) Josephus says expressly, that the valley of the Giants (Rephaim) was near Jerusalem, and extended towards Bethlehem;

Antiq. VII. 4. 1. VII. 12. 4. See also Josh. xv. 8. xviii. 16. 2 Sam. v. 18, 22. xxiii. 13, 14.

This was the most fatiguing day of our whole journey. We had been for sixteen hours almost constantly upon our camels; yet the exhaustion arose more from want of rest and sleep, than from any great exertion. The distance between Hebron and Jerusalem is definitely given by Eusebius and Jerome at twenty-two Roman miles; equivalent to about seventeen and a half geographical miles. Our time between the two cities was eight and a quarter hours with camels; affording a coincidence sufficiently exact.